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“It wasn’t a damn prank,” he growled from behind her. “Someone is messing with you. The cops are gonna continue questioning those kids. They’ll keep working to see if they can track down who hired them.”
She started to take off the coat, then stopped, realizing she still wore her robe beneath it. She’d been in front of him in just the robe before, but now she felt vulnerable. “Do you think the cops will track him down?”
Silence.
Yes, that was what she’d feared, too. Noelle turned toward Brady. “That’s a no, isn’t it?”
He didn’t speak.
So, yes. A no. “I know it’s hard to track people online, and the guy might not have ever intended to actually pay the kids. He just…wanted them out here.” In the middle of the night. To scare her.
I want it to just be a prank.But…
She knew Brady was right. “I don’t have enemies. At least, not any that I know about. I don’t expect everyone to like me, but I’m not some horrible person.”
“I never thought you were.” He closed in on her. His steps seemed slow. Deliberate. “In fact, I think you’re a pretty great person.”
Tears wanted to fill her eyes, so she glanced away from him and swallowed. It was late. Adrenaline had her feeling all shaky. And her big seduction routine for the night suddenly seemed very, very silly. Brady hadn’t stayed with her because he’d magically discovered that he desperately needed her. He’d stayed because her brother had been worried. Because Brady had been worried. And she was grateful he was there with her.
“Thank you.” When she was certain the threat of tears had passed, Noelle focused on him once more. Her hand lifted and pressed against his cheek. The prick of stubble teased her palm. “I’m very glad you were here tonight. Turns out, having a bodyguard wannabe close by isn’t the worst thing in the world.”
His head turned. His lips brushed over her palm.
She sucked in a startled breath. His gaze caught hers.
They could play this off. Act like the brush of his lips against her palm had never happened. After all, it could have been an accident.
His hand rose. Curled around her wrist. And his lips brushed over her palm again.
Notan accident. At all. “Brady?”
He lowered her hand, but kept his hold around her wrist. “You were eighteen years old when you tried to kiss me, and I told you it would be a mistake.”
She did not need this walk down memory lane.
“And ever since then, every time I see you…” His gaze dropped to her mouth. “I wonder how you will taste.”
Nope. He hadn’t just said that to her. Instinctively, Noelle shook her head.
Whatcouldhave been pain flashed across his face before his features hardened. “Got it. I won’t push you. My mistake—”
Screw that. She was done with mistakes. “I’ve wondered, too.” Noelle wasn’t going to wonder any longer.She jerked her hand free of his grip, only to grab his shoulders in the next instant. Noelle pushed onto her toes and her mouth crashed onto his.
His lips were parted. Her mouth was open. And the kiss was…
Everything I always wanted.
Hot. Demanding. Consuming.
His tongue thrust into her mouth. His taste sent desire coursing through her. Her body quivered and ached and she rubbed against him in her sudden, frantic quest to get closer.
Sometimes, you could dream about something. You could fantasize about it. And you could be sure that the reality of the experience would never, ever live up to your expectations.
A moan built in her throat as her nails bit into his shoulders. Kissing Brady was far, far better than any dream she’d had. In fact, it felt like an absolute fantasy come true…because it was.
He tasted rich and decadent. His tongue teased and tormented. He had her aching and quivering, and her body rubbed against his because she wanted to get as close to him as she could.
When he growled, the sound just heightened her arousal. She fought the urge to rip off his clothes. Rip off hers. To give in to the desire that churned so strongly between them and—
